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New Hampshire source. Thanks Andy. Anyway, I would not pursue it any further but let us know if things change. This does seem to me to be a case of let sleeping dogs lie. Write to them and send them a copy of the email from TSB showing that you do not owe the money! You should also let TSB know about this other company. I have a debt with a bank in the uk because of a credit card. Now they have been quite insisting in the past couple of weeks with phone calls and text messages.
I am planning to return to the UK next month although I wont have any savings so I would need a bit of time before I can start re-paying the debt. What is going to happen now? I am only 25!
My family cannot afford to help me, they are working class and have their own debts. Let me know what you think I should do? Should I just tell them the truth?
Call them back? So far I have just ignored calls and letters to my old address. You need to explain to them that you are not in the UK at the moment and when you do return and get a job you will be in a position to repay them at an affordable rate.
If it is your only debt then it is quite easy to do yourself but if you have other debts then would strongly suggest you contact Payplan on FREE as calls are free to this number even from mobiles — they can help with the debt issue. A trained adviser will be able to give you tailored advice and put your mind at rest as there are things which can be done.
I am sending you a copy of our informal arrangements pack to the email address you have supplied as this gives you pointers on how to deal. I will do as you suggested. The only reason why I didnt tell them that I am not living in the UK is because i dont want them to bother my family.
My only other debt is my student loan as I have studied in a UK university. Unfortunately there is no other way of getting rid of a student loan — once you reach the threshold for repaying they will start to take it.
The other one is one you can sort. Good luck. I have Robinson way trying to collect a credit card debt from when I was They have my mobile phone number and home phone number!! Do I contact them to tell them to clear off?! You only contact them to tell them to clear off if a debt is statute barred! That means that no payment has been made to the debt for six years since the last payment was due to be made and there has been no contact in writing and the creditor has not gone for a county court judgment.
You need to be very sure this is the case as otherwise the debt is still live and you would be stopping the six year clock ticking down and make it start again if you contact in writing before. National Debtline provide a useful factsheet on this which I suggest you read. This is the case in England and Wales — in Scotland, most unsecured debts become prescribed after five years of the above.
I have most definitely not made any payments since this debt and I have moved house 3 times and not notified them! I will look into national debt line thank you. So if you have moved house three times do check that you have not been issued with a county court judgment as they may have sent the details to a previous address. I was under the impression that the Court made the decision on costs. I am afraid we are not legal specialists.
It would seem to me that the court orders the amounts but you need to speak to a solicitor about this. You could try the Legal Beagles forum but they will have the same disclaimer. Hi can you tell me if we can still peruse an ex tenant for rent arrears.
He had, via the courts, agreed to pay us a monthly payment towards the outstanding debt. Can you advise thank you. Hello — you can enforce a CCJ after 6 years by applying to the court. They will want to know why you have not enforced the judgment before but if it was because you did not have the address as the person had moved and you have only now found them again the court is likely to agree that it can be pursued.
If you had been able to take acton before and had not then it would be unlikely for the court to agree. If the client has gone bankrupt however then all debt will have been included in the bankruptcy as this is a class action. I had a store card in and the account was closed by them in due to none payment. Have they got any rights to claim this money back after all this time?
Unless they have a county court judgment against you — made to the last known address they had for you — and you have made no payment or acknowedged the debt in writing then it is statute barred. If they take you to court you would make a statute barred defence and they have to prove you have made a payment in the last six years or acknowledged the debt.
I am however surprised that they closed an account though — may not have let you buy anything but the account would still be active. Also it does not matter when the creditors issued a default notice it is the date of your last payment or acknowledgement in writing that sets the date!
Hi, I have a creditor that took me to court so I have a CCJ order but this was back in if I stop paying this what would be the outcome. They could go back to court to enforce the debt if they so wished. The debt is still live as there is a CCJ and so it never becomes statute barred.
When I left UK, I had 3 phone contracts and credit card dues up to pounds. Now after years, I want to come to UK for a business visit, I am scared whether they will give me visa to enter and even if they do, will they caught me and ask me to pay dues. If you left in December and made your last payments then the debts may still be live as they would not become statute barred until December This means the creditors can still collect — even if it had been longer if the creditors had gone for court action at your last known address then they would still be live.
What they cannot do after they are statute barred however is collect them via court action. However, if they do not know your address and you are only coming here for a short while you will not be having a permanent address here where they can find you. If you come back to live here then you will obviously start building a credit history here again. Debt Records are valid for at least 6 years but we do not arrest visitors for debt at entry point!!
Would I to repay it back and if so, how much would I have to pay now? Ok — if the creditor has not gone for a county court judgment — which they can do to your last known address in the UK — the debt would now be what is called statute barred. That means that you still own the money — if you lived in England or Wales — but that as it is over 6 years since you made a payment to it or acknowledged it in writing they cannot chase it through the courts.
If they have gone for a CCJ then they could enforce it if they can show the court that the reason they had not enforced it before was that they did not have your address. Surely if they now owed the debt it should show up in its own right on my credit report? I just get the feeling that they might be trying to pull a fast one after their client Halifax HSOS have told them to stop chasing it.
I am assuming the property was repossessed as you say it is a defaulted account. If it is then what has happened is the property has been sold and there is a short fall remaining.
It seems odd that there should be nothing on the credit report after the repossession but sometimes this does happen. Also mortgage shortfalls have different periods until they become statute barred. When a property is repossessed the money goes to the interest owed first and the remainder then to the capital so if there is anything outstanding there that sits there ready to be chased for 12 years although the council of mortgage lenders have an unofficial agreement that they will not chase after 6 years of no payment or acknowledgement in writing.
This is not the case here as it is only from They may have passed the debt to Shoosmiths but you really do need to know what has happened here — what is odd is that there is no mention on your Experian report.
However, have a look at Equifax and Call Credit to double check but the fact that it is not on the credit report at all sounds odd. The debt however has not disappeared. Has it been repossessed and also did you own it jointly with someone else as they may have been paying it unbeknownst to you. I cannot really answer this without more information so if you want to explain more fully in an email please send one to jane.
I think that would be a good idea as there are mixed messages here and you are also saying your call lasted less than 30 seconds! Did the insurance you took out actually cover the overdraft or hust the loan. I ask that as it is unusual to see that — however, if that is the case and you have made the complaint to the bank and have had their response the best thing is to do is to wait for the Ombudsman.
However, you should also write to the bank with your complaint although you may have done so before you went to the Ombudsman as that is the way to do it pointing out the fact that you are vulnerable as you are still unwell, elderly and not able to pay this.
The Financial Conduct Authority takes a very dim view of creditors who do not treat people fairly especially those who are more vulnerable than others. If you want to add anything further just email me jane. Unless the creditors went for legal action ie a county court judgment then after this period of time, the debts are statute barred if you have paid nothing to them nor acknowledged them in writing.
This does not mean they have gone just that the creditors can no longer take legal action to get them back. However, if they did go for legal action — which may well now have disappeared from your credit reports anyway as they sit there for 6 years — then the debts are not statute barred.
If they wished to enforce them they would have to go to court to do this and they would be asked why they had done nothing before. If they could explain that they could not find you at your last known address then they could file for enforcement action which could include bailiff action, attachment of earnings, third party debt orders, and charging orders if you own a property.
I am sorry I cannot tell you the debts have definitively disappeared. However, if you have got more credit it would seem to me that they may have gone. I am asking a question re on behalf of a friend. A mortgage was taken out about eight o nine years ago, Can you tell me what time has to elapsed for a mortgage not to be paid up anymore.
Hello — are you in fact asking whether they can chase someone for unpaid mortgage if they have left the property? If this is the case once the property is sold then the lender has six years to collect any interest shortfall that was not paid when the property was sold. However, they have up to 12 years to collect any capital still outstanding.
As you can imagine any proceeds of sale go towards the interest first. However, the Council of Mortgage lenders have an unofficial agreement they will not chase any debt over 6 years. The problem is that debt collectors do not have to abide by that and it is not a rule. No payment must have been paid towards it, nor any acknowledgement in writing and the creditor must not have gone for a county court judgment for the money in these periods.
Hi I have a personal debt over 30k , the creditor took me to court and I had to show my earnings and expenses. No decisions were made on the day and the creditors said they would get back to me regarding payment. If not do you know what my best options are as I cannot afford to pay the debt but knowing that it is still there is really affecting my life. If you have a CCJ then the debt is never statute barred.
Check your credit file as if it were 4 years ago there should be something on your credit report. Although it falls off after 6 years the creditor can go back to court to try and enforce the debt but would have to explain why they had not done so in the interim. If you have not changed address then it seems odd they have not been in touch re a repayment plan but that does not mean they will not. You may not be able to afford to pay the debt now but is this because you are paying other debts or just simply that you have no income to do so.
If you do have multiple debts I would suggest giving Payplan a ring to see if they can advise. Hi Jane, Thanks for your response. There are no CCJs or listed debts. I do not have any other debts but due to low earnings I cannot afford to pay much towards this debt.
Hi i have 2 closed accounts on my credit report from from arrow global one november and december and still on there now how do i get them to remove as its been nearly 7 years ive made no contact within that time please help me. Only the creditor can remove things from your credit file so you could contact them to ask why they have not gone but then of course that alerts them to your new address.
However, if you — and it is not a joint debt with someone else — have paid nothing towards the debt for the last six years, nor acknowledged it in writing and the creditor or their agent has not got a county court judgment then the debt is statute barred. In England and Wales this does not mean the debt has disappeared but that the creditor no longer has recourse to the court to reclaim the money. It does seem odd though that it is still on the file so perhaps you could contact the credit agency and ask why it is still there.
Hello, Can you please advise me on the following. I took a Loan out with the NatWest 8 years ago, I wrote to the bank and ask them for a copy of the loan agreement. They wrote back to me to inform me they had lost all my details, folder, loan agreement, etc, however I must continue to pay my monthly instalments. Can you tell me where I stand legally with the NatWest. It depends when you last paid the debt or acknowledged it in writing as debts become statute barred in England and Wales if you have made no payment towards it or acknowledged it in writing for 6 years and the creditor does not already have a county court judgment against you for it.
You could decide not to pay and then if they took you to court they would have to provide the loan agreement etc — they can provide a reconstituted agreement though. I last made a payment in July because I split with my gf and I had to move away from home. And I have made no contact what so ever to welcome fiance. But they send letters to my mums house where I lived when I took out the loan. What are my options and do I have to pay their shocking loan back.
Please can you help me out. It would mean a lot. I left for good in and its now, I am in in home country in Asia. How do I know if my debts are written off? Am sure all the creditors had sent or must be sending letters at the place where I used to stay letters, county court judgments etc. I had never paid anything back. Never contacted back. I just want to know if my debts could be written off by now and if yes, how do I know that?
Thanks for answering. The short answer is you do not. If you have had not paid anything or acknowledged the debt in writing since you went and the creditor did not go for court action then yes the debts are statute barred. They have not been written off but they cannot enforce them now through the courts. However, if they did go for court action which they could have done by trying to contact you at the last UK address they had for you, they could have a county court judgment.
This may have fallen off your credit record but the creditor could resurrect enforcement action — if they discover a new address in the UK — by going to the court and explaining why they were unable to enforce it previously.
Is it possible? K however i might go to Australia, so if i go there, are there any chances that i might get contacted by creditors to pay my U. K debt? You can always contact the creditor and see if they would accept reduced payments and explain why you left the country without a forwarding address and have not been able to contact them since, they could agree but it will be expensive to transfer monies and if the debt is statute barred then you would not have started the clock ticking again anyway.
If there is judgment against you they could always sell the debt to debt collectors where you are. I cannot comment on the situation in Australia except to say the same is true. I moved house in I remembered most of the address changes but a catalogue was forgotten. I had no money I moved again a couple of times and continued paying the fortnightly payments. I ended up cancelling the payments for a while as money was too tight but continued when and if I could manage it.
What do I do? It seems so unfair? I would write to them and explain the difficulties and that you have not been able to pay anything since — as you were paying up to that date the debt is still live. Debts become statute barred 6 years after the date of the last payment or acknowledgement in writing if they have not gone for a court judgment. You have paid back well over the original debt and if they want to take court action they will have to prove you owe all this.
Once 6 years are past without any of this then they cannot go for court action. I do not know what your monetary position is at present but you have a right to ask for the breakdown of charges and they do have to be realistic. Back in I had a stroke and was no longer able to work. My circumstances have not changed I am still living on a small works pension and my disability allowance.
It is certainly a possibility — do you own your own property though? If you like I can email to see if we can help looking at write offs. My email is jane. In I changed energy suppliers. In November I paid my energy bill electronically but I inadvertently paid my previous supplier. I informed the operator that this was the first I had heard of the debt and had not received any contact from the agency or the company.
I was reimbursed the total amount I had mistakenly paid. I have since been pursued by the power company for payment and have been threatened with the debt being passed to a collection agency. Is the company acting lawfully? You paid your bills on time and this had never been raised before. I would suggest you ask the power company for their complaints procedure as you will be making a formal complaint re the distress caused by this and will be passing this on to OFgem if they do not stop chasing you after what has been done.
I called them to try and arrange payment but they told me that the debt had been sold to a third-party in May However I have never been contacted by this debt collection company, and it has been over 3 years.
Is this strange? Are you living in England now? Certainly if you are this might be the reason but they could sell on to another third party here in the UK and then try and chase. If you are not in the Netherlands then I should wait until and if they do. This means the creditor has applied to the court for a county court judgment at your last known address. They may have applied within the 6 year period they are allowed which is perfectly legitimate.
However, you will not be on the electoral roll at this address and your landlord can explain that you do not live there and moved on 6 years ago — county court bailiffs are not aggressive people so if he calls them and lets them know they should let the court know. They are paid to do a job and if the creditor has carried out his legal obligations then it should end there — however, if they did get the CCJ within the prescribed period the debt will never become statute barred.
This may not be a problem if you are remaining in the USA but if you return to the UK then they could ask for it to be enforced then as they were not able to enforce it before as they did not know where you were.
Hello, somewhat complicated case. January was the last time I received communication from Natwest regarding a debt. The debt was following their refusal to pay PPI following redundancy from a contract role.
I was however making monthly payments to them since and last year, I contacted the debt management company handling the debt to ask for a balance. I immediately contacted Natwest asking for clarification. They said that the last time they sent me a letter was January — I never received this. They also said they had hired 3 other debt management companies who also sent me letters — I never received those letters either. The address I was staying at when those particular letters were sent via those 3 different debt management companies was my sisters address and she did not receive anything for me and I sent up mail redirect once I had moved into my own home and never received anything from them either.
Setting aside the confusion regarding the payments and the PPI side of things, they have essentially penalised me further by transferring the debt to a new debt management company which will impact my credit rating despite the fact that I have always kept them informed with change of address details. Any advice would be most welcome. If the debt had not been acknowledged for 6 years since the last payment was due then the debt would be statute barred as nothing had been paid but in fact, by sending them the change of addresses each time you were in fact acknowledging it.
When was the last time you told them of a change of address? However, other debts such as mortgage shortfalls have a limitation period of twelve years. Thus, if you were to submit a payment towards it after 6 years, then it would definitely refresh the limitation period.
This would mean that it would take another twelve years for the limitation period to be completed for it. The bottomline is that once the appropriate limitation period for the type of debt has been completed, then it becomes irreversibly unenforceable.
You making payments towards it after it has become unenforceable does not make it enforceable again. In the end, all you have to keep in mind is that for most debts, if the last time you had contact with your creditor was 6 years ago, then the debt has most likely become unenforceable. You must keep in mind that although it has become unenforceable, it still technically exists.
Always make sure to know what the limitation period for your specific type of debt is. It may be different from the typical 6 years.
Debt Help , Statute-Barred Debt. Table of Contents show. After six years have passed, your debt may be declared statute barred - this means that the debt still very much exists but a CCJ cannot be issued to retrieve the amount owed and the lender cannot go through the courts to chase you for the debt.
That is not to say that lenders cannot use other means of retrieving what you owe, with debt collectors often proving a viable option. Statute barred status does not apply for every type of debt, and some forms may require a longer waiting period before statute barred can come into effect, so hoping that a debt will become invalid after six years have passed might lead to further issues later. The length of time before a debt becomes statute barred will depend on the type of debt; the six-year period set out by the Limitation Act refers mostly to unsecured debts such as a personal loan.
Outstanding mortgage payments have a year recovery period but tax, duty or related interest payments do not have a time limit for recovery. That means the debt can never become statute barred and a court judgment could be issued at any time.
Additionally, at any time before a default is due to expire a lender may be able to issue a CCJ in an attempt to recover payments. CCJ markers last on your Credit Report for another six years, turning that initial six year wait into 12 years before your Credit Report no longer has any trace of your outstanding debt. A statute barred status will not appear on your Credit Report, but any negative markers reported by the lender will feature.
Late payments and arrears, for example, last for six years from date of account closure, while defaults last for six years from date of default.
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